Provided is a water retort apparatus, methods of using the water retort apparatus, and systems including the water retort apparatus. An example of the water retort apparatus comprises a sample test cell, a heating element configured to heat the sample test cell to a temperature between about 212° F. and about 400° F., a condenser in fluidic communication with the sample test cell, a sight glass in fluidic communication with the condenser, a camera configured to capture images of the sight glass, and a controller configured to analyze the images captured by the camera and estimate a volume of water in the sight glass.